


The child within

by DefeatedHorizon



Category: X-Men (Movieverse), X-Men - All Media Types
Genre: Alex is Scott's little brother, Gen, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, In the sense that Alex Summers was not part of the original team, Mostly Movieverse, Not X-Men: First Class Compliant, Protective Hank McCoy, Scott Summers' problem with telepaths, Some references to the comics, X-Men: Days of Future Past Fix-it, Young Charles Xavier, Young Scott
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-20
Updated: 2021-02-25
Packaged: 2021-03-11 04:35:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 9
Words: 12,127
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28159152
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DefeatedHorizon/pseuds/DefeatedHorizon
Summary: Days of Future Past with a twist. In Westchester, Logan meets a younger, less blue Hank and a walking, lost Charles. As he soon finds out though, he is not the first mutant  to have come knocking at the mansion's door this week.Who would have thought that Scott Summers once was a traumatized, skinny boy?(This is an AU where Scott and Alex Summers' backstory is closer to the Comics. Meaning, among other things, that Alex is not Scott's older brother, and never joined the X-men in First Class. Also, Scott went through Sinister's and Jack Winters' very special versions of foster parenting.)
Relationships: Logan & Scott Summers
Comments: 19
Kudos: 58





	1. Closed schools

**Author's Note:**

> This is a rewriting of sorts of DoFP, where Scott was just found by Charles Xavier at the time Logan arrives in 1973. It ignores the events of Wolverine completely, because I absolutely can't figure out how these fit into anything anyway. 
> 
> For the sake of continuity (well, if there is such a thing in the X-men universe) I'm going to assume the following timeline for my story:  
> \- Scott was born in 1960, so he would be 13 in 1973.  
> \- Alex was born in 1965 and the plane accident that killed their parents happened in 1967. I'm going with the Alex-was-adopted-Scott-wasn't story, in which Sinister made Scott believe that his parents and brother were all killed. Then Scott escaped Sinister only to be found by Jack O Diamonds.  
> \- The first X-men movie would take place in the early 1990s, so Scott would have been in his early thirties then  
> \- Jean would be born in the mid-fifties

As far as plans to return to the past in order to fix the future went, Logan thought that Day One could have gone a lot worse. Of course, nothing could have prepared Logan for the way past Charles looked and sounded like (or was that present Charles now?), but as long as he and Hank were onboard with the whole plan to break Magneto out of jail and keep Raven from starting the end of the world in decades from now, that was enough for Logan. Tomorrow, they would drive to where they had located Peter, using a _phone book_ of all things - and hopefully, the plan would continue to unfold nicely.

He sat down on the bed and heaved a sigh. It felt strange, being back at the mansion. Even if this was not the mansion as he had once known it. There were no students, no X-men, no Professor... well, not really. Hank had shown him a room and half apologized for how dusty everything was in there - the vast majority of the mansion had been unoccupied for years, he had explained. Some of the early mutants had been drafted, others had simply left... and now it was just the two of them. Just a young, nerdy-looking Hank and a broken, drug-addicted Xavier. Still, they were here, and that was something. Logan had not had the heart to tell Hank that the mansion being here at all was a major improvement compared to how things were where (when) he came from. That Hank being there at all - _alive_ \- was more than an improvement.

Shaking his head, he tried - but failed- not to think too much about the events of the recent years, about all the people he had lost. People who were probably in here right now, somewhere. Alive. Were Bobby, Kitty and Rogue even born right now? Jean, Storm, Kurt and Scott were probably teenagers. Would Charles reopen the school soon? Logan realized that he did not know much about those early days of the school, and wondered what had led him, back in his timeline, to get his thing together and form the X-men. And what would happen now that Logan was here to interfere. All he knew was that for now, Charles Xavier was a mess, and was definitely not ready to take in children anytime soon.

This train of thought was interrupted by a noise. A small sound, almost inaudible at first. To human ears at least. Logan may not have his metal claws yet, but he did have his super hearing. 

And what he was hearing right now was slightly alarming.

It sounded like whimpers of pain, muffled by what Logan imagined were pillows. The voice was young, very young. Like a little kid, a girl, most likely. That was not Charles, and definitely not Hank. And it was coming from the room above his - where, in a few years from now, the boys’ floor was going to be. 

But the school was closed. So... what was going on? Logan had a suddenly horrifying thought - would Jason Stryker have been here at this time? But he mentally calculated that, no - no, Jason would have been years ago, from what he knew.

Before he could speculate any more, though, the noise amplified, and Logan was on his feet and running upstairs. His memory of the last time he had witnessed an intrusion in the manor was painfully fresh in his mind. He quickly found the door and very nearly broke it down to get in, turned on the light, then froze at what he saw.

There, curled up on the bed, was a kid, indeed. Someone who brutally sat up and turned their head at Logan’s sudden entrance. It was a boy, from the looks of it -very skinny and sickly pale, who was shaking like a leaf and - Logan could smell it - who was absolutely terrified. But the most striking thing that Logan noticed about the child was the large bandage around his eyes. With his curly brown hair and his eyes concealed like this, the boy almost reminded Logan of -

“Scott!” exclaimed Hank as he rushed past Logan and towards the bed. He put a hand on the boy’s shoulder, who flinched hard. “Scott, it’s alright. You’re safe.” 

The boy was still shaking, in what Logan could tell was pure fear. “I didn’t mean to wake you up, I swear!” he muttered. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" He sounded like he was in some kind of trance, not fully there and now.

Hank closed his eyes briefly, shaking his head slowly. “It’s okay, Scott. There is not need to apologize. Nobody is going to hurt you here.”

There was little doubt in Logan’s mind that this Scott was, indeed, the future Cyclops. The age, the hair, the --facial features... it couldn't be all coincidences. And yet, the way Hank was talking to that boy, like he was a wounded animal, was all wrong. Cyclops had been dead for years in Logan’s reality, but Logan distinctly remembered the guy as having been a fearless, always-in-control, perfectly-shaven leader (and also, at some point, as a supreme pain in the ass, but that had been before - before Jean’s death, and the events that followed). It was really hard to think of this terrified kid as the same person.

“Hey, hey. Nobody’s mad,” Hank added, very softly. Then the kid’s tremors amplified. He was clutching his head now, and Hank frowned. “Scott, are you in pain? What is it?”

Scott nodded with obvious difficulty. “M-my head hurts,” he muttered, sobbing. “B-but it's not that bad," he immediately added.

Logan rolled his eyes a little. Understating his pain had _definitely_ been a Cyke thing. The boy winced and, not so subtly, tried to stifle another moan of pain. Hank sighed. "Okay. I'll get you something - something to help with the pain. Just wait here."

The piercing scream that followed nearly knocked Logan out. "No! NO! NO! No! No drugs! Not again! No!" Hank reflexively put his hands on the boys' shoulders, as if to steady him, but this only caused the boy to start thrashing hysterically.

"Scott, it's only for the pain, nothing else-" Hank attempted to explain, only for Scott to shake his arms violently, trying to get away from Hank. The latter released him immediately.

A not so smart move, from someone as smart as Hank. Scott immediately bolted from the bed, attempting to run towards where he seemed to know the door was located. Only to be met by Logan, who, at that point, felt like he had seen more than enough. 

"Leave me alone!" Scott shouted, trying to get past Logan, who was blocking his way out. And, in what seemed like a desperate move, he threw his head forward, probably in an attempt to hit Logan. But he never managed to go through with whatever move he had been planning. Instead, he let out a scream of pain and sank to his knees, holding his temples. He would have fallen forward completely if Logan had not been there to catch him up as he lost consciousness.

"I thought you said the school was closed, Hank." Logan stated, calmly, as he collected the kid's - _Scott's!-_ skinny, way too light body in his arms. 

Hank put a hand on the boy's forehead, and pursed his lips. "The school is closed," he replied, pensively. Delicately, he ran his fingers over the bandaged eyes. "Let's take him downstairs, we have a, huh. Infirmary". 

Logan snorted. "I know about the base, Hank. No need to lie about it." He took a look at Scott again, then took a deep breath. "And I know about this kid, too." 

Hank frowned a little, then motioned towards the corridor, where a half-functional Xavier had now emerged. 

"We need to talk."

_To be continued!_


	2. Imperfect pasts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Logan finds out more about Scott's past.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning that this chapter alludes to some not-so-fun aspects of Scott's childhood. This includes description of injuries and bruises, and suspicions of abuse. Read at your own risk!

"So. How long have you been hiding a sick kid in here?” Logan was looking at the boy who was now lying on the infirmary bed. He was still unconscious, but who knew for how long. 

Hank ignored the question. Clearly, he had other priorities right now. “I’ve given him a mild sedative. But before I give him anything else for the pain, I need to make sure he is not concussed. Hand me the scissors, will you, Logan. I need to check his pupils -” 

Logan grabbed Hank’s wrist before his hand could get closer to the bandage tightly wrapped around Scott’s head. “No. I wouldn’t do that. Even if he’s unconscious, it might be dangerous. Trust me on this.”

Hank frowned. “He did mention that his eyes were the source of his power, but -” One look at Logan was enough to convince him. Hank clearly had a million questions, but shook his head, as though to give himself focus. “I suppose that can wait.” He grabbed the arm cuff attached to the blood pressure monitor, and proceeded to roll up the boy’s left sleeve. “He is exhausted, possibly dehydrated. I need to check a few things before I -”

He froze mid-sentence. The more he rolled up the sleeve, the more injuries appeared. Bruises, scars, some old, some new. The kid had been beaten, repeatedly. Abused. Tortured, even. No matter how long and rich his directory of curses was, Logan was not sure that there would be ever enough vocabulary in there to describe what he was feeling right now.

“I-I had not realized that he was this..." Hank paused, looking for the right word.

"Broken?" Logan supplied, feeling suddenly overprotective. Over Cyclops, of all people. Now that was a first. Or was it? Logan briefly closed his eyes. He did not want to go back to those months after Jean - after Jean.

"... injured," Hank said finally, his voice trembling as he took in the extent of the injuries on that arm alone. There were several round-shaped burns there. Cigarette burns. Logan gritted his teeth in anger.

"Scott did not let me take a look at him when he arrived," Hank went on, sternly. "He was so exhausted that I thought eating a good meal, and resting, were the priority anyway, and the rest could wait.” He lifted the boy’s shirt, revealing a black bruise that was, without a doubt, shaped like the end of a boot. He drew a long breath as he delicately checked for internal damage around the area. “I had... I had my suspicions. I mean - the way he walked, he seemed in pain - but I never imagined that it could be this bad. Otherwise, I would not have left him untreated like this." There was something in Hank's voice, some dryness, some rage that did not completely sound like Hank. 

Logan could relate - he, too, was furious. But Hank’s anger, he found, was not directed only at whoever had hurt the kid so badly. There was something else behind it, and that was when Logan realized that Hank had not even looked at Xavier once since the whole incident had happened. 

Of course. Had Charles had his powers, he would have known immediately. Logan cursed, again.

Charles, who was standing next to the bed, was deadly pale. "Logan, what do you know about this kid?" he said, his voice unsteady.

"Not much about how he became like this," Logan said, sighing. "But I've known him in the future, which is how I know that he makes it. I know that he's one of the good guys. Well, he will be. He never mentioned...that part of his life, though." Logan waved in the direction of the boy's bruised body. It was hard to look at. "I take it he hasn't been here for a long time?"

Charles pursed his lips. "He arrived only a day before you did, actually. Knocked on the door, told us he was a mutant and he was seeking refuge here. We told him that there was not much we could do to help, but he said that he had nowhere else to go. From his... appearance, we believed him." Charles’ eyes travelled to Scott's bandaged head. "Apparently, word on the street is that this is a safe place for mutants." He shrugged. “It says a lot about what this boy has been through that a place like this sounds like a good option for him. All we’ve been able to give him so far is a bowl of soup and a bed.” 

Hank's temples were starting to acquire a dangerous shade of blue and become slightly too hairy. He took another deep breath, fighting for control. “What about his mutation,” he asked Logan. “He only mentioned that it had to do with his eyes - some- some sort of beams?”

Logan nodded. “Yeah. They’re force beams, coming right out of his eyes. Bright red, like pure energy. They’re extremely powerful, and lethal.” 

He paused, closing his eyes briefly as memories came back to him. Canada. The train station. Liberty island. Alkali Lake. 

_ Jean… _

“He can’t control it, though,” Logan added after a while. “I’ve seen him destroy a whole building by accident in a fraction of second because whenever his eyes are open, the beams are out. In the future, he has to wear special glasses at all times.” Now that Logan thought about it, it was probably Hank himself who had designed them. “Look. I never understood much about it, but what I know is that those glasses, and his eyelids, were about the only thing that could contain that energy.” 

“Fascinating,” said Hank, who seemed to have regained some composure. “He came here with a pair of red-tinted glasses, but they were broken. I’ll have to look into those.” He was checking the rest of the bruises - finding some wherever he looked. “But meanwhile, I guess I will have to find a way to make this comfortable enough for him. From what I can tell, physically, he is not suffering from anything life-threatening. It looks like he is just really, really exhausted. Slightly underfed, too - nothing we cannot fix. We will have to make sure that we monitor what he eats and that he drinks properly. As for his headaches… I am guessing they have to do with his power.“

Logan nodded. “The way the kid was holding his head earlier… I know he would get these huge migraines sometimes, even as an adult. But from what I was told, it gets worse when he hasn’t been in the sunlight for a long time, or when he has not released his beams for a while.” It was Charles himself that had shared this with Logan, after Alkali lake. On top of having to deal with the loss of Jean, Scott had had to recover from Stryker’s version of hospitality. Those few weeks after the events - they had been a picnic for no one.

Logan swallowed. “Scott never was an oversharing kind of guy, but I know that his power…well, it hurts.” This was part of the reason why he was so uptight, all the time. He was trying to be in control, of his power, but also of his pain. Putting up with this level of pain was something that few people would be able to pull off, Charles had said then. Logan was remembering this all the more now, watching the amount and type of injuries that the kid had been hiding. It was Scott Summers alright.

Then he remembered something. “You know, I think it would help with the headache if you could give him access to the underground bomb shelter to release some of his power, when he wakes up. You already have this, don’t you?”

Charles and Hank briefly exchanged looks. “That would require some… cleaning, I guess, but it is not entirely unimaginable.” 

Logan gave them another nod. “Good. Then what about tomorrow?  were you planning on leaving him on his own here, while we went looking for Peter?"

"Of course not,” Hank replied, frowning as he assessed the boy’s temperature. “I’ve called a friend. She will be coming tomorrow morning.”

Logan raised an eyebrow, wondering what kind of friend would accept such a request on short notice, coming from two guys like Hank and Charles. 

Charles gave a tight smile. “That’s right. And Jean will be the perfect person for the job, as well. She is just starting medical school, so she will know how to take care of young Scott here.”

Logan cleared his throat at the name. “ _ Jean? _ Do you mean... Jean  _ Grey _ ?”

Hank and Charles both looked at him curiously. “Why, do you know her as well?”

“Oh boy,” was the only answer Logan could manage.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Logan and Scott get to know each other.

Scott was awake, Logan knew that much. 

Why exactly Logan had volunteered to sit down with the boy in the infirmary for the night after the events from the previous evening was beyond him. But Hank and Xavier had left a few hours before, and it was now almost seven in the morning. 

Logan had not slept much. The infirmary may have been equipped with all the cutting-edge stuff of ten years ago, but that did not, it seemed, include comfortable side chairs for people who had to keep vigil over traumatized kids.

And so, Logan had not been asleep, which was why he had known immediately -from the change in heartbeat, and in breathing rhythm- when the kid had awoken. 

He had been awake for a few minutes now, but he had been keeping so perfectly still that Logan was unsure what to do. For what reason would a twelve year old kid (-at least that’s how old he looked) need to know how to wake up silently? Logan suspected that it had to do with the torture and abuse that Scott had obviously experienced. Maybe it was a survival reflex.

Eventually, Logan got bored, and cleared his throat. “It’s okay, kid. You’re in the school’s infirmary. I know you’re awake,” he said, softly - well, as softly as he could manage, being who he was.

“Why? Are you a telepath?” came the answer. It was delivered dryly, but along with a tinge of panic that Logan did not immediately understand. 

“No. But let’s just say I have... great hearing,” Logan replied, cautiously.

“So, you’re a mutant?”

Logan raised an eyebrow. “Is that a problem?” 

Scott shrugged. “As long as you’re not a _telepath_.” He shuddered at the word.

Logan tilted his head, wondering just how much the boy knew about the place - and its owner. “How is the head? Still in pain?”

“I’m fine.” The answer was immediate, like a conditioned response.

“Good. Hank says you gonna need to eat something. Feeling up to that?” Logan grabbed the bag that Hank had left on the side table. “Let me see, he got you, hum, some... chocolate milk, I guess, and beek jerky. Also, these looks like twinkies. Whoa. Seems like Hank went on a shopping spree at the Dollar store.”

That remark elicited a smirk that was so entirely  _ Scott Summers _ that Logan almost grinned. The smirk was soon replaced with a distant expression, though. 

“So, which one is it gonna be, kid?” Logan asked again after a moment.

“I guess I, huh. I’ll have the milk, if that’s okay -” he said, almost timidly, as if he had not had been offered to choose what he could eat for a long time.

“Alright then. It’s one of those box things that come with a straw, so I’ll put the straw in and give it to you.” 

The kid nodded as he sat up. “Thanks, sir.”

“Name’s Logan. I - well, I work here.” _Used to. Will._ _Whatever._

“I’m - my name is Scott,” the boy responded in a whisper.

Silence fell between them. Logan had never expected that coming back to the past would mean that he would have to take care of a young Cyke, but he found that he did not really mind. Watching as the kid slowly drank the milk, he noticed the caution and restraint he practiced in each of his gestures, as if he was afraid of something happening to him in case something went wrong. 

Logan felt a new surge of anger as he thought of what may have caused Scott to become like that. “So. Was it a telepath who hurt you that bad? ‘that why you’re afraid of them?” he blurted out, unable to contain himself any longer.

Scott flinched - hard - and turned his face away from Logan, breathing heavily. 

“-look, kid, I’m sorry, you don’t have to answer if--”

“Two,” Scott cut.

“What?”

“Two telepaths did this to me."

Logan frowned.

"First, there was this guy - he was the director at the orphanage. He probably knew I was a mutant or something, ‘cause he liked to experiment all kinds of fucked-up stuff on me.” 

Logan was so tense that his claws came out of their own accord.

“He was mind-controlling me, too, I think. I got these hallucinations sometimes. Messed up with my head for sure. It took me a while, but I was able to escape. But that’s when my powers --” Scott paused again, his right hand unconsciously picking at the bandage on his left arm. 

He shook his head. “I destroyed a building when it manifested. I ran away, again, but then this other guy - this other telepath - he found me. He wanted me to do things for him. Made me do them, with his mind. He’d beat me if I tried to resist it. But they’re - they were bad things, and I didn’t-” Scott pursed his lips, drawing a long breath.

Logan could only admire how calm Scott was, telling all of this. He, on the other hand, was anything but calm at this point.  _ Names. I need their names. _

“Did he huh - you know. Touch you, or stuff?”

“No, it wasn’t like that, I-” Scott shook his head. “Well. As far as I know. I don’t remember everything, he was -” He rubbed his forehead nervously. “Anyway. That’s why I hate telepaths,” he concluded.

And that was the moment that a young red-haired woman in her early twenties chose to enter the infirmary. 

“Hi Scott, my name is Jean,” she said, smiling widely. “And you must be Logan.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jean and Scott. How it started... how it will be going.

One day, _a long time ago in the future_ , Jubilee had sent Logan an email. It contained two pictures of the same guy, but one was a yearbook picture of an awkward-looking teenager, while the second had been taken several years later, and displayed a beautiful-looking guy - some celebrity actor that Logan, of course, did not know.

 _How it started... how it's going_ , the caption had said. 

" _It's an internet meme_ ," Jubilee had explained, and this was how Logan had been introduced to the notion of _meme_. A knowledge that he had never had the opportunity to apply in any further occasion, but that was just how Jubilee had been. And that was why he missed her so much - just like he missed so many of the kids he had met at the school over the years. All those bright kids that they had lost, that had died way too early. All those incredible people who were the reason Logan was determined to succeed in his mission today. Because all their stories had started here, in this school, and now, he intended to change the way they had ended.

 _How it started... how it's going_ , was, also, what Logan had in his mind as he watched Jean Grey and Scott Summers meet for the first time. Knowing the bond that these two were going to develop, Logan almost felt like an intruder. And yet, he could not help wanting to be there to witness it all.

 _Maybe that way I'll finally get to understand how a girl like her could ever have ended with a guy like him,_ he thought to himself.

For now however, the awkward silence that had settled between them was certainly not shedding any light on the mystery in question.

Since Jean's arrival and introductions, Scott had all but said one word to her ("Hello"), and now he was lying on his bed, immobile and silent, as if he wanted to disappear. Hardly the foolproof seduction technique.

As for Jean, once Logan had reported what had been going on since Hank had left, she had been absorbed in the thorough analysis of the kid's medical file, and had not really been inclined, it seemed, to chat.

After a little while, Logan cleared his throat. "Well, I guess I'll, huh, be going, then?" he said, somehow more gruffly than he intended.

Jean looked up from her notebook, and gave him a tight smile. "Of course, yes. We are going to be fine. Right, Scott?" 

Scott shrugged. "Yeah, I'm alright. Actually, I can probably leave this infirmary-"

"-I'll be the judge of that, if you don't mind, Scott," Jean cut. She was trying to sound assertive, but her tone and eyes mostly conveyed amusement. _Both of them are so damn young,_ Logan thought in passing.

"I'm the doctor, after all," Jean added, almost playfully.

"I thought you were a med _student_?" Scott replied, smirking. 

Jean gave a small laugh. "Ah, so, you _were_ paying attention to what I was saying earlier, after all! It was kinda hard to tell, with the way you haven't been saying _anything."_

Scott nodded. "I guess now we know you're not a telepath," he said with a small smile, but his tone was sounding so hugely relieved that it hurt.

Jean only grinned further. "Oh, believe me, I am _definitely_ not a telepath," she said. Logan's eyes widened, and he examined her expression, but she was sincere. He now remembered that Jean - _the one from his timeline_ \- had once explained to him how her powers had first manifested as telekinesis exclusively. She had only found out about the telepathy much later.

_Guess that'll give old Cyke some time to get used to the idea._

Scott seemed much more comfortable from then on. He sat up slowly again.

"Bye then, Logan, I guess?" he said. "And good luck with - whatever you are going to do with Hank and mister Xavier."

"Yeah. Take care, kid," Logan said pensively. "You're certainly in good hands," he added, eliciting an intrigued smile from Jean. 

Just as he was leaving the infirmary, Logan noticed Hank coming from a room that was located a few doors down the corridor. The lab - at least in Logan's memories of the future.

"Ah, Logan!" Hank seemed very excited, the way he would get whenever he had made a new discovery. Logan raised an eyebrow. "I've been examining Scott's glasses. Of course, I would need to run more tests, but I think I have at least partly figured it out - for now at least."

"You mean you fixed them? In one night?" Logan shook his head. He should not be surprised - this was Hank, after all. It really was him.

Hank looked sideways, blushing a little. "So. They're ruby quartz. I've added a layer and strengthened the sides- it's only a temporary fix but - can you tell me what you think?" 

Logan blinked. "You wanna know what _I_ think? Of a -a - sciency... thing? Me??"

Hank, who had been about to give the glasses to Logan, stopped mid-gesture. "W-well, I-" he stammered. "I mean, since you've seen its proprieties, i-in the future, I thought... and- Well. Never mind."

Logan smirked. "It's okay, Hank. You just don't know me now as well as I know you, is all." He took the glasses and tried his best to examine them, see if anything really striking was missing. He honestly had no idea what to look for, but he tried anyway. The glasses did look more or less similar to what he could remember of Cyke's shades.

"They look fine, from what I can tell at least. You wanna give them to the kid right now?"

Hank nodded. "We need to leave in about an hour. Time for a few tests at least. You said the shelter was enough to sustain his power?"

Logan took a deep breath. "It used to, but I don't know if it had required some adjustments. I suppose there's only one way to find that out."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going with the All New X-men version of Jean Grey, where she discovers she is a telepath only later. For now she only knows about telekinesis.
> 
> Quick transition chapter for now. :) 
> 
> Also, from there, the timeline of events is going to derive quite significantly from the DoFP movie. And I am going to include more elements from the comics. Hopefully the story will still make some sense! ^__^
> 
> Also, thanks to all of those who read and left kudos! I'm glad you're enjoying the story! <3


	5. Road trip

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning for language. Logan and Young!Charles are their own warnings, I suppose.
> 
> Told you that the DoFP timeline was changing - this is how it starts ;-)

"Jesus, Charles, you have to slow down!"

Logan supposed that he had been distracted when he had agreed that Charles (and by that he _meant drug-addicted, not-right-in-the-head_ Charles Xavier from the past) would be the one to drive them to Peter's current location. And now, twenty minutes of insane driving later, he was seriously regretting that moment of distraction.

"I would slow down if we weren't so _goddamn_ late!" Charles replied agitatedly, pressing his foot further on the pedal. 

"Look, Chuck. I don't really care about having an accident. I can heal. But you guys, on the other hand-"

"Stop fucking telling me what to do!" yelled Charles. As he did, the car swayed and Logan cursed.

"Then why don't you stop acting like you don't care if we all die!" Logan replied, not so calmly. "You know what? I've had enough of this sh-"

"Guys, stop-" Hank muttered quietly from the backseat. 

"RIGHT, HANK! JUST REMEMBER THAT IT'S YOUR FUCKING FAULT WE'RE LATE!" Charles exploded. "If it wasn't for you and your brilliant idea to see what'd happen if a hole was drilled in my basement this morning-" 

"I couldn't know that your _nuclear bomb shelter_ would not be enough to sustain that much power! Logan said-"

"- right, because it's so clear that that guy has several PhDs in engineering-"

"Enough, Chuck! It was nobody's fault and if you were in your right mind, you'd be the first to agree-"

"- my mind is fucking perfectly fine!"

"Just look at yourself, for God's sake!"

There was a loud sob, and suddenly, nobody was shouting anymore. They all turned to look at the fourth passenger in the car, who was curled up on himself in the corner of the backseat, hugging his knees. Logan briefly noted that backseat belts regulations really should have been implemented earlier in history.

Another sob. The kid was shaking like a leaf.

Logan cursed. Charles cursed as well, only louder.

Hank sighed. "Scott, it's okay -"

Scott flinched at Hank's voice, and he curled up on himself even more. "I'm sorry," he said in a feeble voice. "I'm sorry. Please, let me go. I promise I won't say anything - and- and I'll pay for the damage - I'll find money, and I'll pay -"

The car swayed. 

Logan cursed again, and Charles finally turned his attention back to the road. 

"Scott. It's not a problem. Money is not a problem. It's only a basement, " Charles said after a long pause. "None of this is your fault. And you're not our prisoner. But it doesn't mean that we're going to throw you out of the school because of this."

"But- I hurt Jean," the kid added with a sniffle.

"Jean is fine. A little shaken, sure, but she's going to be okay. She's not mad at you, either," Hank replied, softly. "And hey, at least the glasses work fine, right?" he added.

The kid nodded. But from the way he seemed to be trying to merge with the car's interior in order to get as far away as possible from Hank, it was quite clear that he was still expecting for one of them to snap and hit him.

Logan clenched his jaw. The whole thing was making him incredibly sad. 

"We're not going to hurt you, kid. None of us is, okay? You're safe here." Logan looked at Charles again, and shrugged. "Well, as safe as one can be in a car driven by this guy, anyway." He attempted a small smile, but nothing about the situation was funny.

"I can hear you, Logan," Charles said, but Logan noticed that he had lifted his foot from the accelerator anyway.

"Scott, we just have this thing we have to deal with right now, but once it's done, we'll be back at the mansion and fix it all, alright?" Hank continued, his eyes not leaving the boy's huddled form. After the morning's incident, they had had no choice but to bring Scott along for their mission to retrieve Peter. The mansion's basement had been significantly shattered by the force of the blast when Hank had asked Scott to release his power "for measurement purposes" in the nuclear bomb shelter. And now Jean was in the hospital with a minor concussion. There simply had been no other option. 

"It's going to be okay," Logan added. Truth be told, he had absolutely no certainty about that fact yet. But he had to believe it. There was no other choice. "I promise. We may all look crazy, but we're the good guys. We really are."

Scott did not reply, nor did he move for the rest of the trip. But at least the shouting contest had ceased, and Charles drove half decently the rest of the way.

"We're here," Charles announced after thirty very quiet minutes. They all got out of the car and, less than an hour later, they were on the way to the Pentagon, with a fifth passenger in the back of the car.

"It's a good plan," Peter announced after reviewing the contents of the folder for less than twenty-five seconds. He handed the papers back to Hank, who shook his head in disbelief. "I'm just not sure how this guy comes in the equation? I mean, he's just a kid. I doubt that he has any experience in, you know, criminal... stuff," he said, pointing his thumb at Scott. "What do you need him for?"

The latter looked up at that, his face wearing an expression of pure terror. "Criminal? What do you mean-" 

"- Scott'll stay in the car," Logan cut quickly, cursing inwardly. From his earlier conversation with the kid, he could guess that this was all hitting way too close to home. Guys recruiting kids with mutant abilities to help with criminal activities... that was precisely the nightmare scenario Scott had been trying to escape from, when he had come to the school. And now they all sounded like they were making it happen again.

Logan noticed that the kid's hands had started to shake, and he winced. "We're not forcing anyone to do anything. And it's not a criminal _criminal_ thing," he added, not liking where this conversation was going. 

Peter shrugged. "We're still breaking a guy out of prison. In the Pentagon," he pointed out, matter-of-factly.

"It's a bit more complicated than that," Logan replied, with a warning in his tone. "We can talk about it _later_ ," he added, hoping that Peter would get the hint and drop the subject. 

"Alright, alright." Peter rolled his eyes. "I still don't get why there's a kid, is all. I mean, no offense, but you don't really look the part -"

Despite the thick red glasses, it was quite obvious that Scott was glaring at Peter. "I got plenty of experience, thank you very m-"

"Scott! Have you had something to eat?" Hank quickly cut. "You need to eat regularly. Here, have a granola bar -"

"Can I get one too? My body needs to consume plenty of sugar." That was Peter, of course.

Hank rolled his eyes, but gave each of them a bar anyway. Scott ate his slowly and measuredly, and Peter swallowed his in a fraction of second.

Shortly after, the car was parked in relative proximity of the Pentagon. 

"You gonna be okay there, Scott?" Logan asked as he exited the car. "Just stay there, don't talk to anyone, and you'll be fine. This should take under half an hour, at most." From the corner of his eyes, he caught a glimpse of Peter yawning at that statement.

Scott nodded uncertainly. "I'm good," he said.

"Good luck," he added, distantly, looking away as he did. Logan knew that expression on Scott's face. He had seen him do this multiple times, as an adult. Whenever Scott would do that, it meant that he was already retreating in his mind. Planning, strategizing. Weighing out his options, thinking of the different scenarios and outcomes.

It generally meant that Scott was about to do something dangerous.

But this was not adult Scott, and Logan simply had too many things on his mind to notice it.

In retrospect, he definitely should have paid more attention.


	6. Days of future futures

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Timeline management happens. Logan gets a headache.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There are some references to the comics here, and characters from them, but it should be understandable to non-comics readers nonetheless.

There were some good news, and then there were some really, really bad news.

The good news: they were back at the car, having freed Magneto without too many problems (thanks to Peter, mostly), and, icing on the cake, Erik was actually willing to cooperate - or at least, at this point, to follow them to the jet and listen to what Charles had to say.

The bad news: Scott was no longer in the car, and, having just broken someone out of the Pentagon, they did not exactly have the time to look for him right now. Rather, they needed to take off as soon as possible. 

_Really_ bad news: judging from the way the kid had very meticulously covered his tracks already (no scent, no tracks, no clues - nothing), Logan had a feeling that Scott, even in this adolescent version, was already a good, though inexperienced, strategist. If he did not want to be found, then he would probably be very hard to find.

And the note he had left in the car left very little doubt as to his intentions to disappear. 

_Thank you for everything, but I can't stay,_ the note read. And then, a typical Boy-Scout-Honor addendum followed: I'll _find a way to pay you back for the damage, I promise._

Logan rolled his eyes. So it was confirmed, Scott Summers had been born that way, after all. Maybe it was part of his mutation.

Logan took the note from Hank's hand, and crumpled the piece of paper in his hand, cursing profusely. "Damn it, kid!"

Erik cleared his throat. "Not that I'm ungrateful for my... _rescue_ , but will anyone please tell me what is going on? I am not quite certain that staying here, unmoving, in front of a car is the reasonable course of action right now..."

"We had a kid with us. He was supposed to wait in the car. He didn't... he took off," Logan summarized. 

"We probably scared him..." Hank sighed. "Now what do we do?"

Charles frowned. "It's his choice, if he wants to leave, then I suppose we let him be-"

"And leave a half-starved _mutant_ kid on his own?" Logan shook his head. "You can't be serious. This isn't you, Charles-"

"-it pains me to say this, but I would tend to agree with the hairy man," Magneto said, cautiously. "If the boy is one of us, we should not leave himin this place, especially after what we just did..." 

"Just give me ten minutes, I'll find h-," Logan started to say, just as Peter popped up next to him, barely disheveled despite having obviously just run for quite a distance. 

Nobody, of course, had registered his - _brief_ \- absence.

"Found 'im," Peter announced cheerfully, loudly chewing some kind of bubble gum. 

And indeed, next to him, was now standing Scott. He was pale and very visibly shaken from the little trip at lightspeed, and Peter was keeping the hand he had been holding to the back of the kid's neck to steady him.

Erik winced in sympathy, having just experienced a similar situation. 

"He was hanging out with this other dude," Peter explained, pointing with his thumb at the teenager on his other side. "Apparently dude was on his way to bring Scott back to us anyway-"

Contrary to Scott, the other boy looked barely affected by the whiplash. He did, however, look slightly annoyed. "I _was_ on my way, but thanks for the help," he muttered dryly. At first sight, he seemed to be barely older than Scott, but his eyes told another story. Mismatched eyes, one blue and the other a glowing yellow. Eyes that had seen a long life of pain and grief.

Eyes that, to Logan at least, were awfully familiar. "Cable... _Nathan?_ Is that really you?" he said, disbelievingly. "We looked for you, when things got tough. But we could not find you. We thought you were -"

Pete's eyes widened. "Wait, you know this guy?"

"I'm sorry I could not help you back then, Logan," Nathan told Logan thoughtfully, ignoring Peter's question as well as the puzzled looks on Charles, Hank and Erik's faces. "I was... _detained_ in another time," he whispered, avoiding to look at Logan. "And when I finally could - it was too late. I was unable to do anything. I'm glad you were able to come here, when I couldn't in time..."

Logan nodded softly, though he was not fully understanding everything. Over the years, he had gotten used to failing to decipher Nathan's cryptic talk. It was the price of being a time-traveller, Charles often explained. "What are you doing here, or should I say... _now_?"

"My job," the young man replied, glancing at Scott. "Fixing the timeline." 

"But this time, it's personal, right?" Logan's eyes, in turn, travelled to Scott's skinny, shaking frame. He was still leaning heavily on Peter, and seemed to have lost all his wit. Poor kid was probably on the verge of passing out. To think that this boy would one day become the leader of the X-men, Jean's husband... and Nathan's father. 

Nathan simply nodded. "I could feel myself... fading away. My whole existence running out. He needs to stay with _you_ ," he stated, looking pointedly at Charles as he stressed that last word.

Then, he walked a few steps to put himself in front of Scott, and put both his hands on the boy's shoulders. "I know things are confusing right now," he said. There was gentleness in his voice, but Logan could tell that Nathan was struggling to contain the strong emotions he was submerged with, seeing his father like this. "But these are the good guys. These are the people you have to stay with. They will protect you, keep you safe."

"Why do you care?" Scott said, deeply confused by the way this complete stranger was addressing him. He shrugged Nathan's hands off his shoulders. "I'm a nobody. And I don't even know you. What's it to you who I hang out with?"

Nathan's smile was bitter. "Everything," he replied in a strangled voice. Logan could tell that he was in increasing pain, from the way he was wincing with every word. "Everything," he repeated in an even lower voice. "You matter, Scott. Your future matters. To me. To us all. And I know you want to do the right thing. So trust me, this is it. This is the right thing to do."

Scott clenched his jaw. He did not reply, but he did not move to leave, either. 

An irritated Charles interrupted the dialogue between the two. "Alright, thanks for bringing Scott here, I suppose. But we really need to get. the fuck. out. of. here. right now."

Erik, who had been watching the whole exchange with great curiosity, raised an eyebrow at Charles' rather uncharacteristic (coming from the Charles he had once known, at least) outburst, but chose not to comment.

"I know," Nathan replied distantly, not really looking at Charles. He then turned to Logan, taking a deep, obviously painful breath. "Logan, I can't stay here much longer. I wish I could help you with what you're about to do but..." He gritted his teeth, barely suppressing a grunt. "This is before my time, and things are too unstable. There are paradoxes -"

"I got it from here, Nathan," Logan said quickly, patting Nathan's shoulder. "I'll keep an eye on him. He's gonna be okay."

Nathan nodded. "I suppose that if you are right, I will see you again, someday. Good luck, Logan. " He winced again, holding his left side in pain.

"Goodbye, Scott. Timeslide by two." And, with one last glance at the boy who _-if everything went well-_ would one day be his father, he disappeared.

"Okay then, let's go," Charles said, opening the driver's door. "Everybody in the car, _now_."

Erik nodded and, without asking anybody, went to sit on the passenger's side. As Hank passed him to lead a still trembling Scott to the car, he gave Logan a small nod. "Long story, I suppose?"

"You have _no_ idea," Logan replied, smirking. 

"Well, it _is_ a long flight to Paris..."

"Wait, what do you mean, Paris?" Scott exclaimed, half panicking. "I'm not going to _Paris!_!"

Logan sighed. He was finally starting to get why Nathan Summers always seemed so unhappy. Time travel was _exhausting_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those who are not into the comics, Nathan Summers/Cable is Scott's son from the future (well... it's complicated) and a time-travelling mutant who tends to intervene in his dad's timeline when he deems necessary. 
> 
> I had to include Nathan in this story at some point, because a) I love his relationship with his dad (especially as Kid!Cable in Dawn of X, but also in Extermination) and b) it's his job to keep the timeline in check, right? 
> 
> Thanks for reading.


	7. In-flight Entertainment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Logan makes a blunder. Scott plays a dangerous game. Some new information is revealed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the long wait! I seem to have finally overcome my writer's block for that story.  
> Transition chapter that adds a bit of background to how Scott came to the Institute - but mostly adds a lot of questions :-D  
> This takes place right after the plane scene in the DoFP movie in which Magneto attempts to give the plane a little makeover.

_ Five mutants on a plane. _

This could have been the start of a good joke, but as it was, the fate of all future mutants was at stake. And right now, barely one hour into the flight from DC to Paris, the prospects were not looking that great.

Logan took a deep breath and tried to relax in his chair, but he hated flying - and flying definitely hated him back. It did not help that Magneto had just threatened to crush the entire cabin during an argument with Charles. That dick had never been good at easing anybody’s nerves, but what he had done here was just spectacularly moronic, even for Erik.

The boy -  _ Scott _ \- looked like he was trying to keep himself from crying - or from puking, it was not all that clear. Whichever, honestly, would not be that unhealthy a reaction after Magneto’s little demonstration. Scott was now sitting as far away as possible from Erik and Charles. Knowing him, Logan was pretty sure the kid had  _ actually  _ calculated which seat that was, and deliberately chosen it. 

Logan could not blame him - Charles and Erik were scary on good days, and this was not a good day at all.

Logan, himself, had been sitting in that part of the plane opposite the area where the two ‘ _ old friends _ ’ had been. Which meant that he could keep a closer eye on the teenager, who was currently sitting as straight as he could, although it was obvious that he was still in shock after what had just happened. 

“First time on a plane?” Logan asked casually, hoping to distract the kid with some form of conversation.

“No,” replied Scott pensively. “If we had crashed, it would not even have been my first crash. It’s how I ended up in an orphanage.” 

Logan cursed. Of course he knew about the crash. Scott never spoke about it, but Alex had mentioned it. The details of the story were unknown to Logan - he had never really asked - but he knew the basics. A crash that had killed their parents and left Scott with a brain injury. How could he forget that? “I’m sorry,” he mumbled. “Must be hard for you.”

“It’s okay.” The boy shrugged. With a nervous movement, he briefly turned to glance at Erik and Charles, who were now both sitting in silence and reading the newspaper, as if nothing had happened. “It was just bad luck, I guess,” he added, sounding more fatalistic than any thirteen year old ever should. “ I don’t really remember much. I even forgot what my parents looked like.”

Logan nodded. He knew the feeling. And he would not wish it on his worst enemy. “Still. What you and your brother went through, it’s -”

Scott started in alarm at that, and Logan immediately realized he had said something he should not. 

For the kid rose from his seat, abruptly. “What did you just say?”

“I-” Logan blurted out. “I said-”

“-I _never_ mentioned my brother to you. To _anyone_.” Scott started to back away slowly, his eyes never leaving Logan in the process. “How would you even know about him? Unless-” he started to pant. 

“Look, kid I can expl-”

“I know you’re not a telepath,” he stated. Logan did not pause to ask how he did. 

“- but if you have intel about me, means you’re working with  _ that guy _ , aren’t you? It’s even worse.” The kid’s voice was getting louder and louder. By this point, everyone’s eyes were on him - except for Hank’s, but Logan was certain that he was listening from the cockpit. 

“Is that where you’re taking me? To that facility where the mutants are kept? Is that where you’re taking  _ him _ too?” He pointed at Magneto. 

Logan was confused. “What? What facility, what are you talking about?”

Scott scoffed. “Right. Yeah. You can deny all you want. But people are starting to find out about it all. The mutant disappearances. You thought nobody would notice, would you? Well, I did. So did _she._ ”

Logan shook his head. “I really don’t know who - or what you’re talking about. I haven’t been here long -” 

Scott ignored him, and looked around himself, at Charles, who was looking at him with a frown on his face. At Erik, who was incredibly pale. “To think she said that I’d be safe with you. I guess she was wrong about you all. Nobody can be trusted.” 

A hand went to the red-tinted glasses, in a gesture Logan knew too well. “Scott, don’t-” His breath caught in his throat.

“Scott, you need to calm down-” That was Charles, who had been approaching cautiously, all too aware of the dangers they were in if the boy decided to remove his glasses. Erik, on the boy’s other side, was walking towards him as well.

“Kid, drop your hand. If you do this, you’ll kill everyone. Yourself included,” Logan tried. 

“I know that. But I’ll die no matter what. Better take all of you with me. That way you can’t hurt anyone else,” Scott replied coldly. 

Logan let out another curse, as he recognized this for what it was. This was not a random, emotional teenager reaction. It was a goddamn Cyke strategy. Damn Scott. The kid had probably calculated all the possible outcomes and associated probabilities. 

Except he did not have all the facts. 

“Scott, just let me explain. I’m not sure I understand exactly everything you’re talking about, but if we had kidnapped you to take you to some mad scientist’s evil lair, or whatever it is that this is all about, do you really think we’d have transported you on a private jet?”

Doubt passed over Scott's face. “I -” He clenched his jaw, but kept his hand on his visor.

“Alright. That’s quite enough,” Magneto said firmly. And just as he did, Scott’s hand detached itself from where it had rested on the glasses, and remained paralyzed mid-air. Logan frowned, until he noticed Scott’s wristwatch. There was not a lot of metal in it, but Magneto was a really powerful mutant.

“Now, can we please talk,” Erik went on, his voice now soft. Calmly, he walked in front of Scott and moved to hold both his wrists. The kid did not even flinch when he did, which made Logan’s blood boil.

“I understand you feel a certain level of…  _ mistrust  _ towards these people,” he went on, just as soothingly. He then removed his hands from the boy’s wrists with a gentleness that Logan found absolutely sickening. 

“Believe me, I can relate. However, there is no need to destroy the whole plane to prove your point, is there?”

Logan could no longer contain himself. “That’s rich, considering that’s exactly what you were about to do not twenty minutes ago!” he snapped.

Magneto was undeterred. “Thank you for your input, mister Logan. If I ever require the services of a consultant, I will remember not to call you,” he retorted icily, not even gracing Logan with a glare. 

Then he went on. “Scott, all I’m asking is that you just give us the benefit of doubt. Let us - let  _ them _ explain. And if you’re still uncomfortable after the explanation, then - well, you’ve seen what I can do. I promise I’ll see to it myself that these people lose your trace as soon as we’re off that plane. Do we have a deal?”

Scott nodded. It was like he was hypnotized. Or like Magneto knew exactly what to say. Like he knew exactly how Scott was feeling and thinking. It was all extremely unsettling.

“Like we’re going to let you get any closer to him,” Charles muttered through gritted teeth.

Erik’s lips slowly curled into a smile. “And what do you suppose I would do to him? Seeing as he’s clearly not made of metal, he’s probably the safest with me.”

“Well, only one of us just spent ten years in jail, am I right?” Logan interjected.

Magneto pursed his lips in irritation. “Not for endangering a mutant. You've been in my head, Charles. Don't tell me you don't know that.” 

Charles shook his head in disbelief. “No, only for murdering a Presid-” 

“ _ You _ are a telepath too, aren’t you?” Scott asked Charles, suddenly, effectively putting an end to their bickering. 

Erik tilted his head and studied the teenager, who was still standing, his hands now at his sides.

Charles rolled his eyes a little. "Well, yeah. No. I mean, I _used to be_. No longer am. It's a long story. Doesn't matter anyway, does it?"

"It does to me," Scott muttered. The hand was back on his glasses.

Logan shook his head in disbelief. “Scott, don’t do that-” 

“-stop trying to control me,” the boy cut dryly, jaw clenched. And in that moment, he was exactly like the Scott Summers Logan knew. “I’ve had it with people telling me what I should or should not do.” 

Yep. That was Cyclops alright. Just as annoying and stubborn. Logan sighed. “You don’t understand.”

There was a tense pause, during which Scott scrutinized Logan. And Logan knew that look. He could almost see Scott's brain analysing, calculating, strategizing, and coming to a decision. 

Then the kid removed his hand.

“Okay. Tell me,” he said. “Tell me everything.”


	8. A long flight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What would Cyclops do?  
> Logan wishes he did not know exactly the answer to this question.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a long, long flight and the characters sort of all want to have a say so... I had to cut this chapter into several. This is why this one feels like not much happens save Logan's long introspection.   
> The next one is already written, and moves the plot forward more significantly - it just needs a litle bit of formatting so I'll post it later today or tomorrow at the latest.  
> Thank you all for the really nice comments and the kudos!! I'm glad so many people enjoy this story :-)

Things were getting -slightly- better, all things considered. The plane had left DC three hours ago now, and nobody had felt the need to display their lethal powers for a while. In fact, Erik had been sitting quietly in the back of the plane since the previous incident - and subsequent conversation, while Scott had settled into his seat next to the window near the front and was - well, the best term for it was probably  _ brooding _ .

As for Charles, he was clearly bored, because he had just taken the seat opposite Logan, and looked like he wanted to initiate a discussion. Not that Logan was particularly in the mood, but when had that ever mattered to anyone? 

Charles nodded in Scott’s direction. “Is he always like that?” he asked Logan, quietly enough that the teenager could not hear him. The expression on his face was half curious, and half exasperated.

“If by ‘like that’ you mean, like an insufferable nerd who calculates every outcome associated with every scenario, then yes, he is always like that.” Logan replied just as softly, attempting to look dispassionate. 

There was a faint smile on his face, though. “But you’ll get to appreciate his talents. I think I’m not supposed to reveal too much, so… just trust me on this. He’s just… well, some would say he’s an acquired taste.”

Charles frowned. “You seem to imply that I’m gonna keep him with me.”

“That’s because you will,” Logan asserted. Yes, Logan was here to change the future of mutants, but he could not imagine a world in which Scott did not join Xavier and lead the X-men.

“The school is closed. I have no intention of reopening it.”

“Where I come from, you did.”

“I really don’t see what would make me want to go through this again…” Charles mused, pain written all over his face.

Logan heaved a sigh, running a hand through his hair. This whole situation was giving him headaches. Truth be told, he did not know how things had unfolded the first time around. He just knew the end result - a school full of kids when he had first met with Charles. Had his presence already compromised that? He had no clue.

But, looking at Scott, he had a feeling the kid was going to play no small part in it all. However, it was certainly going to take some time and convincing, on both sides.

Against all odds, Scott had not seemed to question the idea that Logan was a time-traveller who had come back to the past in order to save mutanthood. The most difficult part of that earlier discussion had really come afterwards - when Logan and Charles had been adamant that Scott did not need to know any details about what they were about to do in Paris, proposing instead that Scott would wait for them in a safe hotel room in the city centre while they would go about their mission.

Erik, of course, had disagreed - he wanted to include Scott in the plan, arguing that the kid would be an asset.

But Logan had stood his ground. Recruiting Peter for the DC operation had been one thing - but Scott was way younger. He was too young for this. 

This, of course, had not contributed to improving Scott’s trust in them. At all. Which was why he was now giving them all the silent treatment. At least, he had not threatened to crash the plane with his force beams, which Logan considered an improvement, all in all.

Charles took another look at the boy, sitting with his back straight in his seat, absorbed in the jet’s technical manual of all things (not that there was much else to read in the jet). The man rolled his eyes, mumbling something about moody teenagers. 

Logan, on the other hand, knew better. He knew that this was not just about Scott wanting to prove himself to the adults. Or about him making sure he could rely on them. No, it went beyond that: Logan had a feeling that Scott truly wanted to be part of the mission because of what it was about. 

And, he thought, as his eyes fell once more on the young- the  _ much, much too young _ \- face of the future leader of the X-men, the risk was high that Scott would not stay in that hotel room, patiently waiting for them all to come back. 

Logan remembered Nathan’s warning. He needed to make sure Scott would end up going back with Charles after this. But how?

The irony was that, for a long time, the first person Logan would have gone to, in cases like these, was Cyclops himself. Because, no matter how complex the situation, Cyclops would always have a plan, a back-up plan, and then three more alternative plans just in case.

_ What Would Cyclops Do? _

Oh, Logan was pretty sure he knew exactly what Cyclops would do, right now. That was the problem.

Because, most likely, Cyclops would be Magneto’s side on this. 

_ Oh, how well he knew it. _

Logan closed his eyes, the painful memories coming to him like a tsunami. 

In his timeline, few people had ever seen beyond the constant tension between Scott and Logan. Most people took the fighting and arguments between the two men at face value - they just believed that Logan and Scott deeply disliked each other - and had from the start, because of Jean. 

Most people believed that the way Logan had acted around Jean - well, around _ the Phoenix _ , to be fair- back when Scott was thought to have been killed, had only made things worse between them.

When Scott had miraculously resurfaced, months after, he had been a changed man, but he was still madly in love with his late girlfriend. And so, everybody had thought hating Logan was the logical reaction. 

And Scott was nothing if not a logical mind. So in all logic, he should have hated Logan. Not for killing Jean, no. For loving her so much and yet being able to do what he had done. 

Something that Scott never could have done, because it was Jean.

So everybody had thought that Scott hated Logan. Everybody - including Logan himself. He had barely known the guy then, so, just like everybody else, he had just assumed.

Oh, how wrong they had all been.

Logan had found out only later, much too late, that Scott had never hated him for this. The only person Scott had ever truly hated, for what had happened to Jean and for the rest, had been himself.

Because that's what Scott was really good at. Blaming himself for things that were not under his control. And it drove Logan absolutely crazy.

But Logan had assumed, and so he had left. Madelyne had appeared, and then Nathan, and Scott had returned, eventually. And so had Logan, and then, at some point, so had Jean, even.

But things had never been the same ever again.

Still, they became a hell of a team, the both of them. They were  _ Wolverine and Cyclops _ , and every time they worked together, throughout the years, they were the best at what they did. They both respected each other, and as a team, they completed each other.

And it did not really matter that everybody thought Scott and Logan hated each other, because  _ Wolverine and Cyclops _ were the best. 

And nobody needed to know that Logan - not Wolverine,  _ Logan- _ would have given his life for Scott, and that Scott would have given his for Logan, without a millisecond of hesitation. 

They just needed to know that Wolverine and Cyclops were good at working together towards the same goal.

Until they weren’t anymore.

When their first - their only - real fight had come, it had not been over Jean. It had been over Logan refusing to send kids to fight a war, while Scott was willing to do whatever it took to ensure that mutants could live.

And right now, looking at this scrawny, traumatized teenager who was so desperately trying to hide his fear and a lifetime of pain behind these damn red shades, Logan thought, maybe for the first time, that he could understand a little bit more about what Cyclops had done at the time. He could see, now, why Cyclops did not see children when he looked at the students of the Institute. It was because he, himself, had never really had the luxury of ever being a child.

What would Cyclops do if he were here today? Would he send his younger self, unprepared and untrained, to the battlefield, for the sake of a cause he was barely starting to comprehend? 

Logan was pretty certain that he would. Just as he was pretty certain that keeping the truth from Scott right now meant that he would be suspicious of Logan for a long time. 

Yet, even though their entire future relationship might be hanging in the balance, Logan preferred a distrusting kid to a dead one. So he would not change his mind, no matter what.

For Logan, too could be stubborn - he had learnt from the best. 


	9. Shared trauma

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The long flight - last part!  
> Games of chess, shared trauma, and revelations.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Second chapter today, as promised!  
> This part was so hard to write...  
> Warning that some of the memories shared here by our characters are quite traumatic (though not described graphically in the present chapter), so read with caution.

Logan’s musings were interrupted as he became aware of some movement coming from the back of the plane. Magneto had left his seat, and was now placing a chess board on the tablet in front of Scott.

“What the hell do you think you’re doin’?” Logan was quick to intervene.

Erik smirked, taking the seat opposite Scott’s. “Testing a theory.” 

He cleared his throat, clearly stating his intention to engage in a conversation with the teenager, who only briefly glanced at him in return before going back to reading his book.

For a moment, Erik just sat there, studying him, without a word.

“So,” he said finally, pointing to the chess board. “Ever played chess, Scott?”

Scott just ignored him. Nobody - except perhaps Hank, but he was busy piloting the plane right now -would have believed the kid to be so engrossed in the description of all the optional features of the aircraft that he had not heard Erik. 

Though Logan knew Scott was a massive plane-nerd, even he knew that there were limits. 

Still, it did not hurt to play along. “Can’t you see the kid’s busy?” he said, exaggeratedly gruffly.

“Busy reading about the quality of the leather used for the seats in a luxury private jet?” Erik chuckled. “Somehow I doubt it.”

“Beats having a conversation,” Scott mumbled, almost inaudibly. His nose was still in the book, which was why he missed the delighted smile that his retort had elicited in Logan.

“I was not going to offer a chat, Scott,” Magneto replied, undeterred. “Just to play chess.”

“Yeah well sorry, sir, but I don’t know how to play. The only board game we had at the orphanage was Twister, and that game really sucks when you’re color-blind.”

“Then, I suppose chess is for you. You only need to be able to discriminate black and white. I could teach you,” Magneto offered. 

Scott seemed to consider this, enough to actually look up from the book. “You sure? I bet it’ll be boring to you, playing with a complete beginner.”

Erik’s lips curled into a smile. “I haven’t had a good game in years. I’m probably rusty.”

Scott shrugged. “Okay then. Why not, I guess.”

Logan had the intuition that he should prevent this from happening. That he should keep Magneto from interacting at all with the kid. But he could not find any valid reason not to let them play a game, and, admittedly, this was the most alive he had seen the kid look since… well, since he had met him the day before, really. So he let them be, although he was keeping a close eye on Erik. 

Charles, opposite him, appeared to have fallen asleep.

Forty-five minutes later, Logan knew exactly why his gut had told him to stop Erik.

Scott had learnt the rules in a matter of minutes, and was on his way to win a third game. Magneto was no longer playing softly, and he was losing. Scott always appeared to be three, if not five moves ahead.

Charles, who had been awake since the end of the first game, was now watching with an intense look in his eyes. A look that could only be described as calculating.

“Checkmate,” Scott announced again. He seemed to be truly enjoying himself.

Magneto had lost the game of chess, yet the smile on his face was triumphant. It seemed that his hypothesis had been verified.

“Well done, Scott,” he said, proudly. “Do you want to play again?”

For a moment, Scott looked genuinely happy about that prospect. But then, his eyes met Charles’, and for some reason, his smile fell all at once. “No, I’m good, thank you, sir.” 

Erik seemed taken aback by this sudden change. He observed the teenager, who averted his eyes. “You were hurt in the past, weren’t you? For your powers, I imagine?” he asked, very softly.

Scott blushed, but did not try to deny. “How would you know?” 

“You have that look.” Erik looked lost in his thoughts for a moment. “I’ve seen it before. Looking in the mirror,” he then confessed. 

And suddenly, Logan felt like he was about to intrude on something very private. Charles had closed his eyes, it was as if he was trying to block this conversation; as if he was trying to protect himself from all the pain and the grief that was about to transpire.

“ _ You _ ?” Scott seemed sincerely surprised. “But - you… I mean, you seem so strong.”

Erik chuckled humorlessly. “And I understand you can shoot force beams from your eyes. It doesn’t mean we’re immune to being manipulated by the wrong people.”

“I guess.” Scott pursed his lips. He hesitated for another second, and then he found the courage to ask what he wanted to: “What happened to you?” 

Erik took his time to reply. “A man wanted to use my ability to his advantage.” 

Scott nodded knowingly. “Was he a mutant?” 

“Yes.” Erik took a deep breath, then rolled his sleeve a little, showing Scott the tattoo on his wrist. “It was… in the camps. I suppose you have heard about what happened during the second World War.”

Scott nodded again. “I’m really sorry.”

“It was a long time ago,” Erik said, almost breathlessly. 

“Doesn’t make it okay.” Scott was aware that Logan was watching him now, and he was very deliberately looking away. 

It almost looked like the conversation had reached an end, when Scott began talking again, in a whisper. “He was a mutant, too. Mister Milbury. He owned the orphanage, and he took an -  _ interest _ in me. My guess is that he knew what I was, even before I turned… like that. He was a telepath.” 

Scott released a stuttering breath. 

The rage in Erik’s expression was hard to miss. The metallic pen that Charles had been using to do his crossword puzzle started to levitate a little. “Erik-” Charles warned, only to be cut by Erik.

“Scott, what did that man do to you?” he asked, barely concealing his anger.

Scott shivered a little. Whether it was from the memory or from Erik’s tone, was not clear. But Logan knew Scott. Bravest man he had ever known. He may be scared, but he would go on. 

He raised his head, then, looking at Erik. “I forgot most of it. But - I have these dreams sometimes... I think they’re memories. There’s always some kind of - of operation table, I’m on it. It looks like a lab of sorts. I think he was experimenting on me. But I don’t really remember more than that. And- and maybe I made it up. I think he did something with my mind. My memories.”

Erik was livid. “Charles? Did you know about this? At all?”

Charles exhaled deeply. “Not really, no. Though - that explains some things, I guess.”

Erik clenched his fists. “Scott, I promise that this man will never hurt a mutant child ever again. I give you my word.” 

Knowing Magneto, Logan knew that this was a promise that was very likely to be held. And if he did not - well, Logan would be happy to do it himself.

“Wait. Scott, that Milbury - is he the man you were mentioning earlier? The one who kidnaps mutants?” asked Charles.

Scott frowned. “No. No, I don’t think they’re connected.”

“What can you tell us about that?”

Scott seemed to hesitate a little - clearly not fully trusting Charles yet. He looked up at Erik, who gave him a nod of encouragement.

“When I escaped the orphanage, I, huh… ended up living in the city but… I ran into trouble.” His voice trailed, and he started rubbing at his arm, where Logan knew he had cigarette burns and all sorts of bruises and wounds. From their brief conversation this morning, he understood that  _ trouble _ was, in fact, another abuser - the second telepath who had hurt Scott. 

Scott shook his head. “So, I was looking for a place to hide, and found this refuge. There were other kids there, some were mutants, some just regular runaways - we were all trying to stay hidden from the rest of the world for a little while.”

“I wasn’t there for long but - in those few days, three of the kids went missing. At first I thought they had just taken off, but then I noticed that they were all mutants. And I found some evidence that they had not just vanished. They had been kidnapped. And then this girl came up - a mutant, like us. She was older, had been investigating these disappearances for a while. They happen everywhere in the country, according to her. Have been for years.”

“Oh my god,” Charles exclaimed. 

He and Erik exchanged curious looks. “We have lost some friends, too,” he explained. 

“This could be connected,” Erik confirmed.

“It’s possible,” Scott went on. “She said she believed it’s an entire network, part of a large organization. Perhaps connected to the military, I’m not entirely sure.” 

He sighed. “She thought that I was in danger, because my power, it - it had attracted attention. That’s when she gave me your address, Mister Xavier. She said you were a friend, and that you could help.” 

There was another long, silent exchange of looks between the two old friends, while Logan watched them both, bemused. There was so much that he did not know yet.

“Scott,” Charles started, very slowly, his eyes still never leaving Erik’s as he talked. “Did your friend, by any chance, go by the name  _ Raven _ ?”


End file.
